Green ‘Devil Comet’ Coming – How to See it From Missouri in April

As if the skies over Missouri weren't going to be interesting enough during April, now there's word that a green 'devil comet' is coming and it just might be visible over the Show Me State during the total solar eclipse even.

I saw Live Science detail what has been called a 'green devil comet'. Note to astronomy geniuses: you really need to polish up your object naming skills. The technical name for this comet is comet 12P/Pons-Brooks and it's the size of a city. I know I've seen this scenario in a movie before.

Why is this comet green and why/when will it be visible over Missouri?

Live Science says this comet is this color because of "a green hue thanks to high levels of dicarbon". This is me pretending to understand what they just said. Here's the kicker though about why this might be visible in Missouri. It is headed toward Earth at 40,000 miles per hour (don't tell the Highway Patrol). It's expected to get closest to the sun on April 24, but might just be visible during the total solar eclipse over Missouri the afternoon of April 8.

So you're saying there's a chance...

The good news is if you're already planning to safely watch the April 8 total solar eclipse over Missouri, you're already going to be looking where you need to (safely I hope) to see the green "devil comet".

Just be aware that Missouri might be in for a rare sky treat on April 8, 2024 as a total solar eclipse might be accompanied by a large green comet. It seriously could happen.